The Optical Charges and Payments (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2025
S.R. 2025/46 · Made 10 March 2025 · Extends to Northern Ireland
Health And Personal Social Services
Made 10th March 2025
Coming into operation 1st April 2025
In accordance with Article 62(3) of that Order it has consulted with such organisations as appear to it to be representative of medical practitioners practising as ophthalmic medical practitioners and ophthalmic opticians.
Annotations to the whole text
Footnotes
- f1
-
Formerly the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety. See 2016 c.5 (N.I.), s1(5)
- f2
-
S.I. 1972/1265 (N.I. 14) as amended by Articles 3 and 17 of, and Schedules 1 and 6 to, the Health and Social Security (Northern Ireland) Order 1984 (S.I. 1984/1158 (N.I. 8)); Article 14(2) of the Social Security (Northern Ireland) Order 1988 (S.I. 1998/594 (N.I. 1)); Article 8 of the Health and Medicines (Northern Ireland) Order 1988 (S.I. 1988/2249 (N.I. 24)); Article 34 of, and Part II of Schedule 5 to, the Health and Personal Social Services (Northern Ireland) Order 1991 (S.I. 1991/194 (N.I. 1)), there are other amendments which are not relevant
Contents
- 1Citation, commencement and interpretation
- 2Amendment of regulation 19 of the principal Regulations
- 3Amendments of the Schedules to the principal Regulations
- 4Application of Regulations 2 and 3
- Signature
- Schedule SCHEDULE 3 TO THE PRINCIPAL REGULATIONS AS SUBSTITUTED BY THESE REGULATIONS
- Explanatory note
1Citation, commencement and interpretationI1
These Regulations may be cited as the Optical Charges and Payments (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2025 and shall come into operation on 1st April 2025.
In these Regulations “the principal Regulations” means the Health and Personal Social Services (Optical Charges and Payments) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1997f1.
2Amendment of regulation 19 of the principal RegulationsI1
In regulation 19 of the principal Regulations (redemption value of voucher for replacement or repair)—
in paragraph (1)(b) for “£61.40” substitute “£65.08”; and
in paragraph (3) for “£15.88” substitute “£16.83”.
3Amendments of the Schedules to the principal RegulationsI1
In Schedule 1 to the principal Regulations (voucher letter codes and face values – supply and replacement)f1, in column 3 (face value of voucher), for each amount specified in column 1 of the Table below (old amount) substitute the amount specified in relation to it in column 2 of that Table (new amount).
Table
| Column 1 Old Amount | Column 2 New Amount |
|---|---|
| £42.10 | £44.63 |
| £63.85 | £67.68 |
| £93.59 | £99.21 |
| £211.05 | £223.71 |
| £72.69 | £77.05 |
| £92.20 | £97.73 |
| £119.70 | £126.88 |
| £232.05 | £245.97 |
| £216.16 | £229.13 |
In Schedule 2f2 to the principal Regulations (prisms, tints, photochromic lenses, small and special glasses and complex appliances)—
in paragraph 1(1)(a) (prism – single vision lens) for “£13.54” substitute “£14.35”;
in paragraph 1(1)(b) (prism – other lens) for “£16.63” substitute “£17.63”;
in paragraph 1(1)(c) (single vision tinted lens) for “£4.80” substitute “£5.09”;
in paragraph 1(1)(d) (other tinted lens) for “£5.33” substitute “£5.65”;
in paragraph 1(1)(e) (small glasses)—
in sub-head (i) for “£69.07” substitute “£73.21”;
in sub-head (ii) for “£61.40” substitute “£65.08”;
in sub-head (iii) for “£33.15” substitute “£35.14”;
for paragraph 1(1)(g) (specially manufactured frames)—
in sub-head (i) for “£69.12” substitute “£73.27”;
in sub-head (ii) for “£61.34” substitute “£65.02”;
in sub-head (iii) for “£33.15” substitute “£35.14”;
in paragraph 2(a) (minimum complex appliance payment — single vision lenses) for “£15.67” substitute “£16.61”; and
in paragraph 2(b) (minimum complex appliance payment — other cases) for “£40.29” substitute “£42.71”.
For Schedule 3 to the principal Regulations (voucher value repair)f3, substitute the Schedule 3 as set out in the Schedule to these Regulations.
4Application of Regulations 2 and 3I1
The amendments made in regulations 2 and 3 apply only in relation to a voucher accepted or used pursuant to regulation 12 or regulation 17 of the principal Regulations on or after 1 April 2025.
Signature
Sealed with the Official Seal of the Department of Health on 10th March 2025
L.S.
Gearoid Cassidy
A senior officer of the Department of Health
Sealed with the Official Seal of the Department of Finance on 10th March 2025
L.S.
Patrick Neeson
A senior officer of the Department of Finance
SCHEDULE 3 TO THE PRINCIPAL REGULATIONS AS SUBSTITUTED BY THESE REGULATIONSI1
“SCHEDULE 3
VOUCHER VALUE REPAIR
REGULATION 19(2) AND (3)
Letter Codes - Values Nature of repair A
£
B
£
C
£
D
£
E
£
F
£
G
£
H
£
I
£
Repair or replacement of one lens £13.90 £25.42 £41.13 £103.38 £30.05 £40.40 £55.02 £114.51 £106.15 Repair or replacement of two lenses £27.74 £50.78 £82.26 £206.76 £60.11 £80.78 £110.00 £229.02 £212.24 Repair or replacement of: the front of a frame £14.24 £14.24 £14.24 £14.24 £14.24 £14.24 £14.24 £14.24 £14.24 a side of a frame £8.36 £8.36 £8.36 £8.36 £8.36 £8.36 £8.36 £8.36 £8.36 the whole frame £16.90 £16.90 £16.90 £16.90 £16.90 £16.90 £16.90 £16.90 £16.90 ”
Explanatory note
(This note is not part of the Regulations)
These Regulations further amend the Health and Personal Social Services (Optical Charges and Payments) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1997 (“the principal Regulations”) which provide for payment to be made, by means of a voucher system, in respect of costs incurred by certain categories of persons in connection with the supply, replacement and repair of optical appliances.
Regulation 2 amends regulation 19 of the principal Regulations to increase the redemption value of a voucher issued towards the cost of replacement of a single contact lens and to increase the maximum contribution by way of a voucher to the cost of repair of a frame.
Regulation 3 and the Schedule amend Schedules 1, 2 and 3 to the principal Regulations. Firstly, the value of vouchers issued towards the costs of supply and replacement of glasses and contact lenses and of vouchers for glasses where the frame needs to be specially manufactured is increased; secondly, the additional values for vouchers for prisms, tints, photochromic lenses and special categories of appliances are increased; and thirdly, the value of vouchers issued towards the cost of repair and replacement of optical appliances is increased.
Regulation 4 provides that the increases contained in regulation 2 and 3 apply only in relation to vouchers accepted or used on or after 1st April 2025.